Suspect wounded in jewelry-store robbery
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Suspect wounded in jewelry-store robbery
Snohomish edgy after police catch man hit by merchant’s shots;
accomplice still at large
Saturday, April 13, 2002
By TOM PAULSON
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

SNOHOMISH — The robbery of a downtown jewelry story was partially
foiled yesterday by another merchant who fired at the escaping vehicle
as the two suspects fled the scene.
“People are feeling real vulnerable right now,” Snohomish police Chief
Rob Sofie said.

The police quickly caught one suspect, who was shot in the arm by the
merchant, when they searched woods near where the suspects had abandoned
their car. The black Honda sedan had been reported stolen earlier in the
day from the Queen Anne area in Seattle.

The search for the second suspect continued last night.

“We don’t think the other one is in the area anymore,” Sofie said. He
described that suspect as a male in his teens or early 20s, 5 feet 8
inches to 5-foot-11 in height, with a medium build and dark or brown
hair.

Witnesses said that just before noon yesterday, Brad Jorgensen, owner of
Sachi Fine Jewelry, and employee Lisa Kraft were in the store. The
street the store is on has many historic buildings that give it an old
Western feel. It is Snohomish’s most popular shopping area and known for
its antiques dealers.

Two young men dressed in dark clothing wearing ski masks entered the
jewelry store, witnesses said, and sprayed Kraft with pepper spray.
Jorgensen was then struck on the head, reportedly with a hammer. The two
men took jewelry and fled the store.

As the suspects jumped into the stolen car, Jorgensen emerged from his
shop bloodied and crying out for help, witnesses said. Another merchant,
identified by townspeople as the owner of Wyatt’s Watches and Antiques a
few blocks east, happened to be outside the jewelry store at that
moment.

Louis Wein, an antiques dealer whose shop is next door to Wyatt’s, said
his neighbor has a concealed-weapons permit and always carries a
handgun.

“I heard several pops and looked out the window,” said Mike Milson,
owner of Black Cat Antiques, which is directly across the street from
Sachi Fine Jewelry.

“Brad came out covered in blood,” Milson said.
The owner of Wyatt’s “was shooting at the vehicle. He shot a tire out
and also shot one of the robbers in the arm.”

People ran for cover. The suspects fled in their car north for several
blocks, then abandoned their car in a wooded area next to a school.

“Thank God we were on spring break,” Sofie said. He said another
resident followed the suspects and alerted police when they abandoned
the vehicle.

The police cordoned off the area, called in a canine unit, a helicopter
and backup from Snohomish County, and searched the area.
They found the wounded suspect and some of the jewelry, Sofie said.

The wounded man, reportedly 18, was treated at an Everett hospital, then
booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of first-degree
robbery, first-degree assault with a weapon, possession of stolen
property and second-degree assault with a weapon.

Sofie declined to say if the merchant who shot at the suspects had been
detained — as some townspeople said. The chief did acknowledge that the
merchant’s handgun and another handgun found in the store were in police
custody.

Wein said he hopes his neighbor isn’t charged with a crime for trying to
stop the suspects. “I think most of the merchants here would be pretty
sympathetic,” Wein said.

Jorgensen was taken to Harborview Medical Center, where he was treated
and released.